Adjustable mounting device for automobile license plates



Jan. 23 1951 v. T. MEAGHER 2,538,975 ADJUSTABLE MOUNTING DEVICE FOR AUTOMOBILE LICENSE PLATES Filed July 5, 1949 Vmen. T. MEAGHER JNVENTOR.

Patented Jano 23, 1951 UN [TED STATES ATENT OFFICE ADJUSTABLE MOUN TING'DEVICE F OR AUTOMOBILE LICENSE PLATES 1 Thisfinvention relates to adjustable mounting devices for automobile license plates.

The'main object of the invention is to provide adjustable mounting devices which are adapted to secure automobile license plates of different sizes and shapes to the conventional frame supports provided on automobiles for this purpose, Without the aid of threaded bolts, nuts or screws. Fastening means such as threaded bolts and screws become rusted, are difficult "to remove when replacement of the license plates is required, and frequently Wear in use with the .result that the'license plates'areinot securely held in place relatively to their supports, and objectionable noiseand vibration occur. The mounting devices of my invention overcome these objections.

The ad-justablemounting device embodying my invention is designed to bear yieldingly on the face of the'license plate for the purpose .of holding the plate against its support and for preventingrelativevmovement between the plate and support. The mounting device is threadless. It is .held .in operative position by retaining means made of :soft metal, such as lead, pot metal or the like. The retaining .means not only hold ,the parts together in assembled relationship, but because of the character of the soft metal composing it, provide rustlessand yielding means for holding the license plate on its frame support efiiciently and noiselessly. .Another important advantage of my invention is the fact that no tools are required for placing mymounting device into operative position relatively to a license plate or for removing it.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description.

.-In the drawings:

.Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the mounting device as it appears before it is put into operative position relatively to a license plate and support.

Fig. .2 is a horizontal sectional View of the mounting deviceas it appears when in operative position relatively to a license plate and its supporting frame.

Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken in the plane .of the line 3-301 Fig.1.

-.Fig. .4 .is a plan view of the retaining means of the mountingdevice, detached.

.Fig. is a side elevation 1.01 the outer end portion of one of the spring arms of the mounting :device.

.In the preferred embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings, the adjustable '3 Claims. (Cl. 24- 231 mounting device for securing automobile license plates to supporting frames conventionally provided on automobiles, comprises five separate parts,'name1y: a central elongated sleevemm-j her [0, two identical spring metal arms II and i2, and two identical retaining members [3 and I4 made of soft metal, such as lead, pot metal or the like.

"The sleeve IO preferably is about three inches in length and internally wide enough to receive theinner ends of the spring metal arms H and :12. The sleeve IQ is made of a single piece of galvanized sheet iron or other metal, such as aluminum, die stamped to form walls l5, l6, l1, l8 and 19, which form :a four sided open ended tubular member which fits snugly around the superposed bodies of the straight inner ends of the spring metal arms ii and E2. The sleeve ID has a width slightly greater than that of the spring'arm I l or [2, and a depth slightly greater than the combined thicknesses of said arms, forming an internal chamber adapted to slidingly house the ends of said arms.

The spring metal arms III and 12 are identical. Each consists of a relatively thin and flat, elongated piece of spring metal, bent to provide a straight inner end member 28, an outwardly directed portion 2i and an inwardly directed portion 22, the latter terminating in a reduced shank 23 and terminal 2d. The inner end members 20 of the arms I I, I2, are straight and parallel to each other, disposed in surface contacting, superposed position, longitudinally slidable with respect to each other within the sleeve I!) for the purpose of adjusting the length of the combined arms II and i2. 4

The retaining members 13 and M are identical, each consisting of a rectangularly shaped, thin, fiat piece of lead or other malleable metal, provided with a relatively long and narrow slot 25. The slot is shaped to permit the terminal 24 to be passed therethrough.

An automobile license plate is designa ed 26 and a supporting .iramezl. The plate ZBmay be fastened to the frame 2? either near the top or bottom edge of the plate. First the fiat, straight end .28 :.of .one of the spring arms 1! or .12 .is sinserted .into the sleeve 10 from one .end :of ith'e sleeve, and then the endlZll of the other ofsaid spring arms is inserted into the opposite end of said sleeve 'I'lLso that the spring arms protrude from the sleeve in opposite directions and are slidable there'into provide for adjustmen'tol the combinedleng'th of thearrns.

License plates-are provided with openings adia- 3 cent their edges and these openings register with similar apertures in the supporting frames 21. After the length of the assembled sleeve and spring arms has been adjusted as required by the location of the openings in the license plate, the sleeve portion III is placed in face abutting position on the plate and the terminal 24 of one of the spring arms is inserted through the registering openings in the plate and support. A retaining member, I3, is slipped over the terminal 24 and given a 90 degree turn to lock it in place. Then the terminal 24 of the other of the spring arms is inserted through registering openings in the plate and support and the other retaining member, I4, is slipped over the terminal and given a 90 degree turn to lock it in place.

It will be observed that the divergent angles at which the spring arm portions 2| and 22 extend when the mounting device is free, as in Fig. 1, and when the device is in operative position on a. license plate, as in Fig. 2, are not identical. This is due to the fact that the mounting device, particularly the arms i and I2, are put under tension or stress when in the operative position. The outwardly directed portions 2| and the inwardly directed portions 22 of the spring arms are so formed that the terminals 24 fall short of reaching the vertical plane of the plate abutting surface of the sleeve l0, whereas after the device has been forced into plate-fastening position, said terminals 24 extend beyond the vertical plane of the plate 23 sufiiciently to permit said terminals to extend through the openings in the plate and support, and to receive the retaining means I3 and M on the shanks 23 for locking the mounting device in its intended relationship to the license plate.

In its operative position, the sleeve portion ll] of the device bears yieldingly against the face of the plate 26, near the center of either its top or bottom edge, and the retaining means.|3 and I4 bear yieldingly against the rear of the supporting frame 21', holding the oppositely curved or directed portions 2| and 22 of the arms under tension resulting from the tendency of the parts to resume their original unstressed positions as illustrated in Fig. 1. A comparison of Figs. 1 and 2 will show that in order to force the spring arms into plate engaging positions, the parts 22 and 23 thereof must be brought into substantially perpendicular position with respect to the plate 26 and sleeve l8 (Fig. 2) and the angle between the parts 2| and 22 is less than the angle between said parts when they are free as in Fig. 1, before stress has been imparted to the arms to put them into the position of Fig. 2.

Obviously the exact form of the spring arms may be varied. They may be curved or bowed outwardly in the region of the parts 2| and 22 instead of bent to provide the relatively straight portions 2| and 22 shown in the drawings.

It will be understood that when the retaining member i3 or M is placed on a terminal 24, the elongated slot will extend transversely of the spring arm, and that when the retaining member is given a 90 degree turn, the slot 25 will extend longitudinally of the spring arm but transversely of the terminal, and the shoulders 28 on the terminal 25 will bear against the under side of the retaining member and prevent it from separating from the spring arm. Due to the soft character of the metal composing the retaining devices l3, l4, combined with the tendency of the spring arms to pull the terminals 24 toward the back of the plate 26, a firm engagement is achieved be- 4 tween the terminals 24 and retaining devices l3 and I4 and unintentional turning of the retaining devices is prevented.

The tendency of the spring arms to return to their unstressed positions (Fig. 1) after having been forced into the relationship shown in Fig. 2 causes the sleeve H! to yieldingly bear in one direction, against the face of the plate, and causes the retaining devices l3 and M to yieldingly bear in the opposite direction against the reverse side of the plate and support. This natural tendency of the device coupled with the soft quality of the retaining devices, insures a firm, noiseless, vibrationless mounting of the plate on its support.

Details of construction and the form of the parts may be altered without departing from the scope of my invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An adju table device for mounting an automobile license plate on a supporting frame, comprising a pair of spring arms extending in opposite d rections each having a straight inner end ortion and an outwardly bowed portion termimating in a reduced shank and a terminal device consisting of oppositely extending lateral projections on the end of said reduced shank, the shank and terminal device being disposed substantially at right angles to the straight inner end portion and the terminal device being in approximate alignment with the said inner end portion before the mounting device is placed into operative position on the plate, means loosely and telescopically engaging the straight inner end portions of the spring arms and holding them in parallel relationship while permitting free longitudinal movement of the arms relatively to each other therein, said spring arm engaging means bearing yieldingly against one face of the license plate, and threadless retaining means consisting of an apertured piece of relatively rigid material engaging the reduced shanks of the spring arms after said terminal devices have been passed through registering apertures in the plate, frame and retaining means, said terminal devices on the ends of the spring arms bearing yieldingly against the threadless retaining means, and the latter bearing against the frame and plate and exert ing pressure in a direction opposite that imposed by the bearing of the spring arm engaging means on the opposite side of the plate.

2. An adjustable device for mounting an automobile license plate on a supporting frame, comprising a pair of narrow, nat strips of spring metal forming spring arms extending in opposite directions, each having a straight inner end portion and an outwardly bowed portion tcrminating in a. reduced shank and a terminal device consisting of oppositely extending lateral projections on the end of said reduced shank, the shank and terminal device being disposed substantially at right angles to the straight inner end portion and the terminal device being in approximate alignment with the said inner end portion before the mounting device is placed into operative position on the plate, a flat sided sleeve loosely and telescopically engaging the straight inner end portions of the spring arms and holding them in parallel relationship while permitting free longitudinal movement of the arms rel atively to each other therein, said spring arm engaging sleeve bearing yieldingly against one face of the license plate, and threadless retaining means consisting of an apertured piece of relatively rigid material engaging the reduced shanks of the spring arms after said terminal devices have been passed through registering apertures in the plate, frame and said retaining means, said terminal devices on the end of the spring arms bearing yieldingly against the threadless 5 retaining means, and the latter bearing against the frame and plate and exerting pressure in a direction opposite that imposed by the bearing of the spring arm engaging means on the opposite side of the plate.

3. The automobile license plate mounting device defined by claim 1 in which the threadless retaining means consists of an apertured piece of soft metal.

VIRGIL T. MEAGHER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 10 Number Name Date 409,621 Welch Aug. 20, 1889 1,615,698 Hartzell Jan. 25, 1927 

